The Full Story of Endor
by Hamfast Gamgee
Summary: What really happened on Endor, with a little twist at the end, see if you can spot it!
1. Endor

The final story in my rather loose trilogy. Set around the time of Return of the Jedi. Watch out for a little twist at the end!

The full tale of Endor!

Palpatine, The Emperor of all the Galaxy was supervising the final construction of the new Death Star a mighty space station. The Emperor liked construction projects, even ones as big as this to be completed on schedule, and despite red tape, labour problems and sheer bureaucracy, it had managed to be. 'Although in terms of expense we have had to compromise more than I would like. Remind me to have a little chat to the Accounts Manager, I always enjoy those anyway!'

'As you wish, my lord,' replied his apprentice, Lord Vader. 'Shall I add that to your schedule?'

Palpatine responded by cackling 'Really, Vader. You are my chief henchman in the Galaxy. Why sometimes you feel to act like my bureaucratic secretary, I never know. Although of course some say that the secretary of the Emperor is one of the most powerful positions of the Galaxy, I do hope you having been reading some of the more... unofficial press in the media and have been getting ideas?'

'Of course not, my lord. Although I might suggest it is also a precarious position. Your last one was summarily dismissed.'

'Well, I do like my Secretaries to be efficient. And loyal. As I insist on all my servants. But it is odd that despite all of our power, red tape and bureaucracy always seem to manage to be of influence in any regime.'

'Ah, yes, loyalty. Speaking of which, one of your Moffs has been proved less than loyal. A certain Moff Whitesnake. You have heard me mention of him.'

'Oh, Whitesnake a traitor? Well, well, well, just goes to show you can never tell. I thought he was one of my most loyal servants. If only because he knows what I do to those that are disloyal. Well, it's a simple enough matter to arrest him. We have the power.'

'Yes, but not just now. It would be wise to move delicately. With someone in his position, we have to show some of the evidence publicly.'

'As you wish.'

'I have sent you the reports of the Imperial fleet build-up. We need to be prepared for this supposedly surprise attack from the Rebels. Including my son. I'm not so sure why we call it a surprise attack if we're ready for it!'

'Well the surprise is they don't know that,' The Emperor laughed evilly. 'Oh, and once you capture your son make sure you bring him to me, I need to talk to such an ... interesting potential ally!'

'But we shouldn't get too complacent. These Rebels are talented, in some ways more so than we realize, we just can't seem to get rid of them. I hope you are prepared.'

'Really, Vader, I know you have been given a shock or two by these people, but I am surprised by your lack of faith. We know the size of the fleet they sent to us, it is a puny, pathetic band. Oh, and for some reason the rebels seem to think they can knock out the shield generator to the Death Star with a small patrol. What delusion of grandeur. I have a small legion down their, should be sufficient, don't you think!'

'Yes, my lord, but don't foget the local population, Ewoks, I believe,'

'Ah, yes, Ewoks,' Palpatine looked down and pushed a few buttons on a computer screen.

'They look fairly harmless. What are they going to do, tickle us to death? Oh and by the way Vader, will you and no-one else ever mention Ewoks to me again. They look harmless but a little annoying!'

With a wave of his arm, Palpatine dismissed Vader. But Palpatine needed some private time to think. And his apprentice was one of the subjects he needed to think about. One of those things was Vader. The apprentice of a sith lord was in an odd position. The 2nd most powerful one in the Galaxy. But recently, Palpatine was beginning to think that Vader was not up to the job. He had been his apprentice for twenty years or so and had still been unable to quell the Rebellion in the Galaxy.

Fine, so the Rebels where talented, and fine, Palpatine had sometimes manipulated them for his own ends, more so than the wisest of the Rebels had feared, but really, Vader should have destroyed them by now. There was another candidate Vader's son who seemed to be showing more promise than Vader himself. Maybe it was time to let Vader go. Oh, and when one dismissed a Sith Lord apprentice, one didn't just hand him a notice!

Palpatine was well versed in sith lore. In theory the Master should have has an apprentice, someone who could one day slay him and take his place. In such a manner, the dark side flourished. But Palpatine was a little unsure about this idea. He did not like the idea of sacrificing himself, even for the enhancement of Sith power. And as the most powerful Sith lord in history, he felt he had the right to have his own views in this matter! But always, the choice of apprentice seemed to lead to dramatic events. Palpatine needed to be careful.

One thing which he regretted as he normally did was the absence of his most talented General. Tarkin. Of course, Tarkin had died years ago on the first Death Star, but if only he had survived. The Empire felt his loss. Despite having no force powers, Palpatine would have given Tarkin some special privaleges had he defeated the Rebellion. Indeed there where times when Palpatine felt that the death of Tarkin on Yavin 4 was of more hurt than the destruction of the Death Star. Others, in later years would express that same viewpoint!

In the meantime, on one of the frontline Star Destroyers guarding the Death Star was once Lieutenant, once Captain, once Admiral but now Moff Whitesnake. On it's metallic bridge, under the starry Galactic sky he stood, surveying the defences. He turned to his assistant, Baldrick.

'Right, Balders, run me through some of our plans we have for today's attack,' a little informal for Imperials, but Whitesnake been a Moff had licence to do things his way and always had done so, ever since he was the apple of Tarkin's eye.

But his assitant was rather dim-witted, 'Well, for you I have cheese and tomato, a little letuce, Krackenian prawns with Corellian sauce and for me...'

'Baldrick, I said today's attack, not snack! And you can have the Krackenian prawns. But I need to know a little about the nature of this Star Destroyer. As much as you can after only been in it's command in a week. What's that? Some of the defence shields are re-initializing. Sounds bad. Shall I take a look? Ah, sorry, I need to have a talk with the Captain, look into it, will you!'

Unfortunately for Whitesnake the command, 'Look into it,' can be taken in many different ways and Baldrick took it to mean the most quick investigation. A shame for him as it lay a clue into their forthcoming fate.


	2. Whitesnake!

Palpatine was just finishing a talk by com-link to one of his Warlords. One who was not at Endor, but on the far-end of the Galaxy. Possibly because the Warlord was not up in the inner-circle of power but was a promising ally. Palpatine was hearing about the crushing and slaughter of some rebels in the system of Hyfrolian. It amused him. So did the career of the Warlord a Rtwpq Iuooo.

Peculiar name but this man was once a Rebel. But he had a falling out with the Rebellion. But the Rebels made remarkably little effort to placated him.

In fact, Palpatine knew that had they even just tried to persuade Luooo, he would have either returned to their cause or chosen another career. But they did neither and instead tried and failed to kill him, so Rtwpq joined the Empire, became powerful and now over some years created several legions of troops loyal to him to boost Imperial power. One to watch!

For now, however, Palpatine needed to watch this situation. Surely the final end to the Rebellion. Although Vader seemed nervous and pre-occupied. As the first stages of the attack started Vader turned to Palpatine before heading of to the moon, 'I have a bad feeling about this one!'

Well, it's all said elsewhere what happened to the fleet, the Death Star and Palpatine. There's no point in repeating it here. The only thing extra worth noting is the fate of Whitesnake.

Whitesnake was issuing orders but concerned. The battle seemed to be taking unexpected turns, the Rebels proving tougher than all had thought. 'Shields down,' yelled someone as the ship took a shot. 'Get up the back-ups,' Whitesnake order sharply.

'Sir, we can't,'

'WHAT, Do it!'

'It's the wrong system, sir, we've been sabotaged, Rebels, surely,'

But Whitesnake didn't believe that. Vader had told him the ship had been checked and particular about security. No rebels could have performed such a delicate and unique operation on one particular ship. Betrayal, he was thinking. But by whom? When he had a private message. From Vader.

Whitesnake looked at the wavery, ghost-like transmission. 'Moff Edmund Whitesnake, I want you to know that I have sabotaged your ship. You are going to die in an explosion in this battle. I am responsible. I will not tolerate your betrayal and conspiracies against the Imperial Majesty. Goodbye!'

Whitesnake was horrified. Trying to fight in a major battle without shields was perilous indeed. But what conspiracy? He wasn't aware of one. But, he realized quickly, Vader was always jealous of his rise to power. In fact, Whitesnake had tried to be moderate and more than once deliberately made mistakes to hide any too sudden or dangerous rise. But obviously now Vader saw him as a threat and made to eliminate him. At the price of an entire crew of a Star Destroyer, but that was how Sith Lords worked!

But Whitesnake was going to put up a fight! He put his crew to order and made out to sell his life dearly. But that made no real difference. A shot from the lead Rebel ship hid the Star Destroyer, splitting it into little pieces. All hands where lost. Whitesnake died when deadly radiation flooded the bridge, causing him to inwardly explode. Baldrick swiftly followed.


	3. Not quite the end!

BETRAYAL! YES SURELY BETRAYAL WAS WHAT IT WAS,' these where the thought going through the soul for want of a better word of Palpatine. He had just been slain, Vader had returned, briefly before his death to the light side, and that bloody son of his, Luke had not gone to the dark had had been the obvious steps.

Palpatine's sprit looked around. His body had died in a flame of force-induced fire from Vader. The Imperial fleet had been mostly destroyed, the Death Star as well. Although had he been properly alive, he still might have salvaged something from the wreck. Palpatine could sense people partying at his demise. The Rebels had thought they had won. Had even set up some sort of New Republic.

BUT HE WOULD SHOW THEM. HE WAS DEAD BUT NOT GONE. THE JEDI COULD MUSTER SOME SORT OF SPIRIT LIFE AFTER DEATH USING THE FORCE. THINK THE SITH COULDN'T? IN A FAR MORE POWERFUL WAY, ACTUALLY. HIS PHYSICAL BODY MIGHT BE DESTROYED, BUT HIS SOUL WOULD LIVE ON FOR A TIME. NEVER, WOULD THE REBELS KNOW A MOMENTS PEACE IN THEIR NEW REGIME. HE WOULD NEVER CEASE FROM HARASSING THEM, THINKING UP PLOTS, USING INFLUENCE, NEVER REST OR ALLOW THEM REST.

Mind, of course, been a spirit is not the ideal thing to be, even for a Sith lord. And such was the destructive, horrible evil of his governance that even a Galaxy lurching from civil war to civil war was a better alternative. But the spirit of Palpatine continued.

WHERE WAS MUGWORT? HE WAS INVOLVED SURELY DESPITE BEEN HOLED UP IN EREBOR LAST TIME I HEARD.

Actually, Mugwort was currently hiding in a crater been bombed upon by a Imperial governor and had less influence than he wanted.

BUT HASTLE THEM I WILL. USING EVERY POWER AND SITH WAY I CAN. THE GALAXY HAS NOT HEARD THE LAST OF ME YET AND IT WILL BE A WHILE BEFORE THEY WILL BE FREE FROM MY INFLUENCE. FIRSTLY, I THINK A MEETING WITH THAT PROMISING GRAND ADMIRAL THRAWN. YES, HE WILL KNOW OF ME.

Now, obviously even as a sort of ghost, Palpatine's influence had to end sooner or later. But the question was when? Decades, even after they thought they had won the remants of the Empire or its descendants would wreck havoc with the New Republic.

Would the Galaxy ever find genuine peace from Palpatine? Well, frankly, this author doesn't know. Tales from this time keep on coming up. And as long as they do the influence of Palpatine is not truly gone. 30 years of interment war. Galactic peace would be nice. But as long as these stories keep coming, it has not found it yet.

**THE END.**


End file.
